More User Reviews:

T - Fudge, lots of iced coffee. Slightly acrid with burned roasted malt. Portrays most of the classic stout flavours, primarily coffee and malt. Could use either a little more smoke and peat, or maple and chocolate.

M - Creamy, rich, with a buttery finish.

O - I thought this was great, the mouthfeel in particular. (423 characters)

Poured a jet black with a well formed tight creamy-like mocha colored head that had great lasting power,mild molasses and bitter chocolate notes mainly with a hint of raw earthiness as well.Nice velvety smooth creamy mouthfee it glides and coats very well,nice balance of sweetness and dry earthiness notes of molasses and licorice with chocolate tones thruout as well as underlying cola notes,a nice drying subtle earthiness comes thru late making it very drinkable.A damn good double stout to be had very flavorful and pretty complex,recommended. (548 characters)

Appearance  This one was almost black in color with a thick brown head that was humongous. It lay there for quite a while and laced the hell out of my glass when it finally went down.

Smell  The rich Seattle-based coffee aroma is gigantic. The coffee is soaked in rich crème, almost like a coffee latte of some kind. The malts are of course heavily roasted and mixed with a strong raw sugar.

Taste  Oh, this one is very milky. Itd almost say that it was a Milk Stout except the malts are so big and brutal. They are unapologetically bitter and, like I said when reviewing this on-tap, its like licking coffee grounds. The out of place hops that I picked up when drinking this at the pub on-tap are nowhere to be found, and the beer is all the more better for it.

Mouthfeel  This one is medium-bodied and very bitter all over the tongue. I keep licking my lips for liquid to counteract the dry nature of this beast.

Drinkability  This is one of the few good Stouts that are produced here in the PacNW. The label says that its a winner of the gold medal in 2001 & 2004 at the GABF, and I certainly see no reason to doubt that claim. (1,159 characters)

Beautiful pour into chalice.Nice dark brown thick appearance belies the mild nature of this oatmeal stout. Very smooth chocolate with caramel undertones. I was slow to warm up to Elysian brews but am quickly becoming a true believer. Inexpensive and totally drinkable.I've discovered one of my favorite stouts. (313 characters)

Smells of sweet roasted malt with hints of oats and some hops as well.

Full bodied with a thick creaminess that rolls off the tongue slowly, roasted character is divided by an acrid roasted flavour and a coffeeish malt. Hopping is well done but does not go too overboard, earthy flavours of yeast and faint charcoal hit more towards the back as the long lingering roasted finish ensues.

Thick and flavourful, a perfect beer to pair with a dessert or chocolate none the less. (603 characters)

The beer pours a black color with a tan head. The aroma has a lot of roasted malt and chocolate malt. The flavor is a little more complex. I get quite a bit of heavily roasted malt and chocolate, as well as some oats and cream notes. There is also a hint of smoke. Thick mouthfeel and medium carbonation. (348 characters)

Had on tap at the Elysian bewpub in Seattle. Poured a pitch black with comparitively dark brown head. Aromas are definitely roasted malts through and through with very strong black coffee taking the forefront. Taste is how it smells, coffee coffee coffee, Definitely a coffee lovers stout. Really bold and flavorful but for me a little too much emphasis on coffee, somewhat lacking in the other roasted flavors i enjoy such as chocolates. A delicious beer nonetheless, just a little unbalanced. (494 characters)

My first brew from Elysian, it would be hard to mess up strong oatmeal stout in my book but let's go and see what this brew is all about. Buddy Geof, thanks much for the brew let's see how dark WaWaWashington likes their stouts. Appears pitch black no ruby or dark brown highlights to speak of, big ol' mocha tan head forms thick and leaves abundant but scattered lacing around my imperial pint glass.

Aroma has a very nice roasted malt backbone that pretty much dominates the nose with strong black coffe and dark chocolate with an air of fruit and cream tossed in. A touch of herbal and minimal pine accented hops, with dark fruits naming plum as the main one I could pick out.

Flavor is a creamy blend of dark chocolate and mildly acidic iced brewed coffee. This would go well instead of a cup of Joe on a rainy afternoon in Seattle, or you could wait until afternoon if that's more justifiable for you. The roasts roll through first with secondary notes from the rolled oats additions and herbal and pine accented hop flavors.

A bit of alcohol does peak through and carbonation tickles a bit much for my liking in the mouthfeel department. Medium to fuller bodied carbonation makes the brew a bit rougher on the palate than it should be and the dark roasted malts leave an unrelenting burnt flavor on the palate between sips this could be a downer.

Drinkability overall is solid, I have no gripes with the beer or the flavor and I enjoyed my opportunity to try this PacNW offering from Seattle. I haven't had many brews from that region and I'm glad that this one came my way to further my horizons. Very enjoyable up there in the realm of Breakfast Stout, Wake and Bake, JavaHead, and other big beers within this vein. (1,730 characters)

I get a good shot of hops in the nose that goes along with chocolate and espresso notes. Very pleasant.

Bitter hops, chocolate and coffee notes with a sweet finish. This is a nice, take it home to mother kind of stout. It doesn't really change as it warm... nothing is peeking out behind the chocolate and hops.

Very smooth with terrific carbonation. This is another stout that doesn't push any envelopes with the style but it's still enjoyable because of the bitter hops. I was glad to try it but don't need to revisit in the future. (652 characters)

A- This beer has a black body with a foam made up of a mass of medium-sized bubbles that is light tan. There is a sea of microbubbles racing through the body.

S- This beer has a dark malt aroma with a slight sweetness to it. There is a faint earthy tar note in the background. For the most part it is pretty one dimensional.

T- This beer has a nice dark roasted malt flavor with molasses, faint coffee and a finish with a faint bitterness from the malt. There might be a slight hop bitterness to the finish but it is mostly malt flavors.

M- This beer has a medium-full mouthfeel with a fizz in the finish that really lightens the body and cleans up the finish.

D- This beer has a nice drinkability but there is not much depth so it gets a bit boring for more than one bottle. (825 characters)

Appearance- Pours a light black, if such a thing exists. I see just a tiny bit of light working its way into this beer, keeping it from being jet black, but maybe I'm just seeing things. The head is a shade over 2 fingers of dense, shiny bubbles. The cappuccino head sparkles and tempts you to come and play while you wait for the head to slowly recede into a cream and caramel skim on the top. Very good lacing keeps track of my sips.

Smell- BITTER chocolate up the ass, or the nose I guess, and dark caramel with vanilla following along with a faint smell of day old, dark roast coffee. Then there's the hops. Citrus hops pairing very well with the heavy bitter chocolate. I love this in an Imperial Stout. A lot going on in the nose, very nice.

Taste- Following the smells lead, you are beaten over the head with roasted and burnt malts, and bitter chocolate that goes on for days. What's impressive about this stout is all the shit that is going on underneath the onslaught of bitter malts and chocolate. The citrus hops take a back seat, but only by a small margin and speak up plenty along the ride. The vanilla and dark caramel stay low key but you are aware of their presence. Then there are hints of molasses and toffee, along with other complexities that make this beer a thinker. Very complex, and very tasty.

Mouthfeel- Rich and full-bodied. There is enough carbonation to keep it from being too thick, but it is low enough to remind me of fruity-chocolate syrup. This beer will coat your mouth and stay awhile.

Drinkability- I'm between scores on the drinkability because of the complexity. This beer is a prime example (much like Samuel Smith's IS) that an Imperial Stout doesn't have to be loaded with alcohol to be great. I took my sweet time enjoying this beer trying to pick out every flavor and let it coat the mouth. However, after I was done with the bomber, I was ready to move on to something on the lighter side. Give it a try! (1,986 characters)